UPCOMING WTO AGENDA TO HIGHLIGHT NEXT MEETING OF THE CALIFORNIA STATE BOARD OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE

SACRAMENTO, May 11, 2001-Secretary William (Bill) J. Lyons, Jr. announces that the next meeting for the California State Board of Food and Agriculture will be held on May 30, 2001 beginning at 9:00 a.m. The location for the May meeting will be at the California Department of Food and Agriculture Auditorium, Room 127, 1220 “N” Street, Sacramento. This meeting’s focus will be on the implications to California agriculture of the upcoming World Trade Organization Ministerial talks in Doha, Qatar. Speaking will be Ms. Patricia Sheikh, USDA Deputy Administrator of International Trade Policy; Anne Chadwick, Chadwick & Company; Robert Schramm, Schramm, Williams & Associates; and Dan Sumner, Director of the Agricultural Issues Center at the University of California, Davis.

The State Board of Food and Agriculture advises the Governor and the Secretary of Food and Agriculture on agricultural issues and consumer needs. In the past, the Board has hosted forums that brought together local, state, and federal government officials, agricultural representatives and citizens to discuss issues of concern to California agriculture. The Board’s fifteen members are appointed by the Governor, and are selected to represent a broad range of agricultural commodities, geographical regions, and both the University of California and the California State University academic systems. Members serve four-year terms without pay. There are no term limits and appointments do not require Senate confirmation.

All State Board of Food and Agriculture meetings are open to the media and the public. For more information about the State Board, please contact CDFA’s Office of Public Affairs at 916/654-0462 or Vanessa S. Arellano, Executive Director of the State Board of Food and Agriculture at 916/653-7643 or visit www.cdfa.ca.gov/programs.

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FLEX YOUR POWER. To meet California’s energy challenge, CDFA urges businesses and consumers to conserve. For a list of simple ways that you can reduce demand and cut your energy costs, see our Web site @www.cdfa.ca.gov.